Rillish Water
Rillish Water is a small city nestled in the confluence between the Rippling Sorrows and the Rivenbough. It is the seat of the Celtimore clan who reside in Whitehelm Court. Rillish Water was once more prosperous being a popular trading center town fifty years ago but since has suffered mounting crises such as flooding, rampant disease and the waning authority of the governing clan. It has now fallen into disrepute amongst traders and travelers alike. History Beginning as a farming village, the town grew as the surrounding kingdom did. King Hurmon Ossory commissioned the construction of a road paved with stones mined in the West Hills that would connect the settlements of his kingdom making for quicker trade. Rillish Water was situated in the middle of Hurmon's Road so it connected the wealthy harbor of Stony Point in the south with the river market of Rivers Rest in the north. Multiple towns sprang up nearby and the Celtimore clan was raised to the status of lords by King Hurmon. The prosperity of Rillish Water came to an end during the natural calamity known as the Deluge. A two year drought precipitated a season of flooding, the likes of which had never been experienced before. Dozens of towns situated on the rivers were swallowed up and swept away along with a near twelve thousand peasants. For a year, Rillish Water was located on an island in a massive flood zone. Besides the thousands who died of drowning, others died from starvation or from waterborne diseases. Wives and daughters were sold by desperate residents, and cases of infanticide and cannibalism were reported to King Hurmon who was seen as ineffectual during this time. After the Deluge the Celtimores were said to struggle diligently to restore their lands. Dykes were built to abate the flooding and new settlements were erected along the new confusion of rivers and streams. Large portions of Hurmon's Road now lay beneath ponds and wending through perilous marshlands. With the trade route severed the Celtimores felt they no longer needed to swear fealty to King Hurmon and so seceded from his domain and declared themselves a new kingdom. They built the Whitehelm Court and ruled from Wold Morne to Midgemere Grove. The Celtimores lent their arms to King Donnis Flinn and supported his reign as High King and as such renounced their own kingship. While never regaining the status they once had before the Deluge, the Celtimores remained leal servants of the High King for a thousand years. Disaster once again struck Rillish Water when a plague broke out in the West Hills, driving out thousands of refugees who flooded into Rillish Water seeking sanctuary. This greatly exacerbated poverty and unemployment issues. Also the overcrowding and idleness brought with it the crippling addiction to the substance known as retchwine. Layout The town is situated in a flood plain and so the town is built upon a series of mottes and stilts. The highest ground of Rillish Water has the castle of Whitehelm Court built upon it and the rest of the town sprawls forth as the castle serving as its center. Most of the markets and shops are located on the outer ring of the city such as Wending Commons and the Concourse. This is because foreigners dislike the idea of venturing deep into the city. The structures built here are susceptible to sinking beneath the marshy ground. So valuable building materials like stone and brick were overlooked in exchange for wood. When these houses descend underground, it is common for the residents to just build another house atop the roofs. Many years of this practice has conceived a city of winding wooden houses that make up a labyrinth; only locals have learned to navigate. The major streets of Rillish Water are replaced by canals cruised by skiffs, rafts and narrow barges. These canals are polluted by pig guts, rotten food, feces and human corpses. Falling into these canals is known to be very treacherous. Not only would one likely become infected by waterborne diseases but a species of albino crocodile rest on the underbed. They have evolved to live in these polluted waters and their only known home is in Rillish Water. They normally scavenge on the detritus thrown into the canals but are always eager for the taste of live meat. Notable Locations *'Whitehelm Court', the ancestral castle of the Celtimore clan. It is built of stone mined from Skyre and remains the only structure in Rillish Water made of stone. Over five hundred years it has slowly been sinking into the marsh it is built upon. Only the torso of an old statue of High King Donnis emerges through the mud. *'Riverscythe Bend', a curving canal that begins at the Gate of Rills and continues to the steps of the Whitehelm Court. Many residents make their home here. *'Crookfingers', a series of small canals where thieves' guilds and brothels are prevalent. *'Sowbelly Drift', a canal that flows between rows of butcher shops and whorehouses. It reeks of the pig guts and feces that pollute its waters. *'Drennon Lower', section of Rillish Water where woodworkers occupy. *'Wending Commons', the largest market complex in Rillish Water. *'Skulking Skink', a tavern of ill repute located near Sowbelly Drift. Owned by Deggory Hides-his-Feet. It is known to serve the illegal substance retchwine and is one of the locations throughout the city that conceal an entrance into the Barrows. *'Pint o' Plenty', a tavern located along the Riverscythe Bend. It is known to serve the illegal substance retchwine . *'Creeking Tower', the tallest building in the town. Its molding crooked structure threatens to crumble during every strong gust of wind. It serves as the hovel of astromancers. Three verdigrissed bells atop the tower are traditionally rung upon the coronation of a new High King. *''' Dockside Bunkhouse', a whorehouse inhabited by the foulest of sellwomen and seediest of scoundrels. *'Crannoghall', holy center for the Devouts of the River Seething . Located near the outer edges of the town. *'Gate of Rills', the main entrance into Rillish Water that opens upon the Oldstones . *'Gate of Egrets', an eastern entrance into Rillish Water that opens upon the Writhing. *'Gate of Flies', a southern entrance into the Rillish Water that opens upon the Muddyside. *'Barrows''', a clandestine subterranean complex of tunnels where the most nefarious of criminals make their home.